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Friday, 21 October 2016

Orchestral Manipulation & Editions Mego bargains

It's fitting that The New Music Vol.5 - Canada, should feature Andre Prevost's Fantasmes, which was first performed on November 22, 1963, the day President Kennedy was assassinated. It was subsequently dedicated to JFK., 'victim of the world which I have described here in my music'. You may have noticed that America is about to elect a new president and one of the two candidates is a maniacal businessman favoured by large swathes of the country, apparently; enough to cause concern, at least. Of Fantasmes, Prevost wrote: 'Hallucinations, anguish, the world overthrown, an unending tension, in short, the fantastic despair of a nightmare - ' Although he had an individual's nightmare in mind he may as well have been describing the post-election scenario should Trump win.

I found this album today in the charity shop for £1.99, although not even that price would have tempted me if I hadn't read Pierre Mercure's description of his piece, Lignes Et Points, as transferring 'electronic music techniques: reverberation, playing the tape backwards, filtering of harmonic structures...slowing down and speeding up the tape' to the symphony orchestra. Sold! As you know, the reverse process, or rather, combination, of tape and orchestra was gathering momentum as a force in new music around this time (mid-60s). Electroacoustic and tape music would continue to be a force thereafter. I find the idea of reversing the process intriguing, not having heard it being attempted before. It does work very well, particularly when the brass ebbs and flows as if, yes, playing 'backwards'. Tragically, Mercure was killed in a car crash in 1965, aged just 39. Lignes Et Points was his last composition. It's not available on YouTube, but researching him further, I found this purely electronic piece...

Talking of purely electronic, I bagged these too in another charity shop today. What did I say about people with Good Taste never giving it away? Someone who liked the Editions Mego label obviously did. I say 'liked', perhaps they still do but have opted to de-clutter and be content with MP3s. I know the feeling, but his charitable act was my gain, especially since they were only £1 for singles and £2 for double CDs - yes! I had heard Fenn O'Berg's Magic & Return before but accidentally deleted it and didn't bother getting it again. Not because it wasn't good, it's very good, but because it got forgotten about. The CD revival continues apace and with vinyl at silly prices it makes sense...